This 3 days in Grand Teton itinerary features the best hikes, mountain views, and historic sites in the Wyoming national park.

A blue river with yellow and green foliage and trees on the banks reflects the pointy mountains in the distance on this 3 days in Grand Teton itinerary.

Mountains reflecting in the river, hikes to waterfalls and alpine lakes, sunsets behind pointy peaks — it’s all a part of this Grand Teton National Park itinerary.

The park in northwestern Wyoming is located along 45 miles of the Teton Range, where the Jackson Hole valley offers everything from skiing and snowshoeing to hiking and rafting. Yellowstone National Park is also just a few miles north, so you can easily visit Grand Teton and Yellowstone together.

When you’re planning your first Grand Tetons itinerary, this guide will help you figure out a scenic driving route, what you must see, where to hike, and the best place to stay in Jackson Hole. Just be warned — after these 3 days in Grand Teton National Park, you’re going to want to come back here time and time again!

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Where to Stay Near Grand Teton National Park

If you’re also visiting Yellowstone National Park, these are some towns near Yellowstone and Grand Teton you may want to consider.

Most of the hotels near Grand Teton National Park are in Jackson, Wyoming .The town is set up for tourists, with a ton of restaurants and shops. A couple of the top-rated places to stay in Jackson include the Cowboy Village Resort for log cabins and the Wyoming Inn of Jackson Hole for cozy Western-style accommodations.

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3 Days in Grand Teton Itinerary

This 3 day Grand Teton itinerary starts with a scenic overview drive through the park and includes free time to focus on your favorite activities, whether that’s hiking, river rafting, wildlife watching, or shopping for souvenirs.

Day 1 — Grand Teton National Park Scenic Drive

Your first of 3 days in Grand Teton National Park is the perfect time to drive the big loop on Teton Park Road and Highway 26/89/191 (one road with many names). Tons of overlooks and photo stops are on this route that follows the base of the Teton Range on one side of the loop and the Snake River on the other.

On the way, take note of a few trailheads to return to over the next couple of days. We’ve included several of the best stops, but there are plenty of other well-marked viewpoints on this route you can add on as time permits.

A rustic wooden barn sits in a field with a row of mountains in the distance on this 3 day Grand Tetons itinerary.

Sunrise at Mormon Row

Established by settlers in the 1890s, the Mormon Row historic district once had 27 homesteads and a collection of rustic barns and homes still stand against a backdrop of pointy mountain peaks.

Taking photos at Mormon Row at sunrise or sunset will get you the best lighting, but this is also a busy time when lots of photographers set up their tripods to capture the paintbrush of colors in the sky. If you’re not an early riser or pro photographer, I would save this stop for the end of the day to get a jump on Teton Park Road and Jenny Lake before the crowds build.

Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center

With floor-to-ceiling glass windows facing the mountains, the Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center in Moose is worth a stop on your way in or out of the park. Inside, you can watch a 24-minute park movie and stroll through exhibits about the wildlife and people of the valley. This is also the place to grab permits and trail info, shop for souvenirs, and sign up for ranger programs.

Teton Park Road

Teton Park Road runs along the base of the Teton Range for about 20 miles between the national park headquarters in Moose and the Jackson Lake Dam. On this Grand Teton itinerary route, you’ll be starting in Moose and working your way north.

With just one hiking stop on the agenda, today is a good time to pause at some of the scenic lookouts on this road, like the Windy Point Turnout, Teton Glacier Turnout, Cascade Canyon Turnout, Mountain View Turnout, Mount Moran Turnout and Potholes Turnout.

Jackson Lake Dam at the end is where the Snake River and the lake meet. When the lake is still, the mountains reflect in the water.

The next four attractions are on Teton Park Road.

A sidewalk leads to a log cabin-style church with a row of pointy mountains behind it in the background on this 3 days in Grand Teton National Park itinerary.

Chapel of the Transfiguration and Menors Ferry Historic District

Built like a log cabin with a picture window view of the mountains, the Chapel of the Transfiguration is part of a small historic district near the park headquarters in Moose. The chapel still holds regular services open to the public.

A short walking path at the neighboring Menors Ferry Historic District leads to an old cabin and country store on the river. This is a pretty spot to spend a few minutes taking pictures with the mountains in the background.

Jenny Lake, Hidden Falls, and Inspiration Point

Right at the base of the Tetons, Jenny Lake is one of the most popular destinations in the park. The mountains that hug the shoreline make a picture-perfect reflection when the water is still.

While there are a lot of adventurous hikes and longer lakeshore walks in this area, on your first day in Grand Teton National Park, I recommend trying a short fan-favorite trail for a sampling of some of the best park scenery.

The Inspiration Point and Hidden Falls hike is about 2 miles roundtrip and moderately difficult. Take the spur just off the main trail to the waterfall view before climbing up to the Inspiration Point lookout. In the summer season, boats shuttle hikers across the lake to the trailhead for a fee. When the boat is not running, the hike becomes 6 miles, roundtrip, to follow the shoreline from the parking area to the trailhead. I did the longer hike to Hidden Falls in the off-season (so no boat) and it took a little over 2 hours.

Jenny Lake Scenic Drive

Just off Teton Park Road, Jenny Lake Scenic Drive is a short one-way loop that leads to a beautiful viewpoint on the water with the mountains looming overhead.

An aerial view of the Jackson Hole valley with the Snake River winding through the trees can be seen from the summit of Signal Mountain on this 3 days itinerary Grand Teton National Park.

Signal Mountain Road

As you approach the end of Teton Park Road, take a turn onto Signal Mountain Road. The winding 5-mile-drive leads to the peak of Signal Mountain for a panoramic view over the Jackson Hole valley. This is a different perspective than you’ll get from the other scenic viewpoints on this Grand Teton itinerary, so I highly recommend making the drive.

Colter Bay Lakeshore Trail

Colter Bay Village on Jackson Lake is about 5 miles past the northern end of Teton Park Road. The low-key Colter Bay Lakeshore Trail here traces the waterfront on a 2-mile loop, while a pebbly beach is the perfect spot for a picnic.

The village has a national park visitor center and facilities, plus a gas station and a couple places to eat. From here, you’ll turn around and start heading back south on Highway 26/89/191.

Oxbow Bend

The Snake River wraps around a little island and the mountains reflect in still water at the Oxbow Bend lookout. If you’re a photography enthusiast, you may want to make another trip here for sunrise, but expect to be bumping elbows with others on the same mission. Otherwise, it’s a beautiful spot to look for birds and wildlife hanging out along the shore.

J.P. Cunningham Cabin

The 1888 J.P. Cunningham Cabin and historic site is on the National Register of Historic Places. You can walk up to and through it on a 0.3-mile dirt path with mountain views beyond the wide open fields.

Snake River Overlook

This spot was made famous by the photographer Ansel Adams, who captured the iconic view of the pointy Tetons behind the winding Snake River. From the parking area, follow the paved walkway for a few different angles of the landscape.

A blue-green river reflects evergreen trees on the banks and mountains in the distance on this Grand Teton 3 day itinerary.

Schwabacher Landing

Another stunning sunrise spot, Schwabacher Landing is on the banks of the Snake River, where the mountains often reflect in the water. Unlike the more developed overlooks in the park with paved parking, this one is a mile down a bumpy, unpaved road. (I drove it in a regular car in dry conditions, but go at your own risk). From a dirt parking area, a footpath runs along the shoreline with plenty of different angles to capture the scene.

Highway 26/89/191 Overlooks

In addition to the stops above, look for these other scenic overlooks for different perspectives of the mountains: Elk Ranch Flats, Teton Point Turnout, Glacier View Turnout, Blacktail Ponds Overlook, Albright View Overlook, and Sleeping Indian Overlook. Pick one that faces the Teton Range to watch the sunset colors behind the mountains (the best location varies by season).

Day 2 — Grand Teton National Park Hiking

After a busy overview of the park on the first day of this 3 day Grand Teton itinerary, day 2 is set aside for hiking to some of the prettiest mountain lakes. I’ve included a few options below for easy to moderate hikes of varying lengths. Casual hikers may want to pick just one or two, while more outdoorsy types can squeeze most of these into the next two days.

A rustic wooden fence sits in a field with yellow and bare trees and pointy mountains in the distant background on this 3 day Grand Teton itinerary.

Moose-Wilson Road

Since you already drove the main highway on day 1, Moose-Wilson Road is a different route to enter the national park, surrounded by forests, marshes and wildlife. About 1.5 miles of the 15-mile road is unpaved, and the whole thing is closed to RVs and trailers as it’s narrow in some sections.

Connecting the small communities of Wilson and Moose, the route passes the Teton Village ski area, the Laurance S. Rockefeller Preserve, and the strenuous trails at Death Canyon and Granite Canyon (we didn’t include those on this list as they are for very experienced hikers only).

Laurance S. Rockefeller Preserve and Phelps Lake Trails

The Laurance S. Rockefeller Preserve Center has exhibits, ranger-led hikes, and junior ranger activities. From the center, the moderate 6.3-mile Phelps Lake Loop trail encircles the lake at the entrance to death canyon.

From the nearby Death Canyon trailhead, a moderate, 2-mile hike leads to the elevated Phelps Lake Overlook. Keep in mind, you would have to hike another mile down to reach the shoreline from here. The Phelps Lake Loop is a better option for a lakeside hike.

Taggart and Bradley Lake Loop

This two-for-one loop trail leads to a pair of turquoise-hued alpine lakes with mountains bending around the banks. The full loop to see both lakes is about 6 miles from the Taggart Lake trailhead and moderately difficult, but you can shorten it to around 3 miles by just hiking to Taggart Lake and coming back the same way. The trailhead is about 3 miles from the park headquarters in Moose.

Leigh Lake Trail

An easier and shorter option for lake-lovers, the trail to Leigh Lake is 1.8 miles round trip and also follows the shoreline of String Lake on the way. You can continue further along the lake to extend the hike. This one is just north of Jenny Lake but quieter since you can’t drive right up to it.

A waterfalls drops down over rocky tiers with trees on the banks under a blue sky. Hidden Falls is a must-see on this Grand Teton itinerary 3 days.

More Grand Teton Hikes

There are more hikes than I could possibly cover for a 3 days in Grand Teton National Park itinerary. Check the Grand Teton hiking page to find the perfect one for you. One popular but unofficial trail you won’t find on there is the hike to Delta Lake.

Day 3 — Choose Your Adventure

The last of 3 days in Grand Teton National Park is the perfect opportunity to hit another trail, go back to any stops you loved or missed on the first day, explore downtown Jackson, or book an excursion in the area.

The blue waters of Jenny lake have green and yellows foliage on the banks during fall in Grand Teton National Park

Jackson Hole Sightseeing

If you haven’t spent much time in downtown Jackson yet, you could use the final morning of your 3 days in Grand Teton to pop into a bakery, shop for souvenirs, and check out the elk antler arches at the town square.

Just outside of town, the National Elk Refuge has a scenic drive and hiking and biking trails. In winter, you can book wildlife watching sleigh tours to look for the elk, bison, moose, mule deer and bighorn sheep that gather here.

The National Museum of Wildlife Art in Jackson features animal paintings, sculptures and photos, plus a kid-friendly discovery center with hands-on activities.

Grand Teton Excursion

Hit the trails for another Grand Teton hike today from the list above or book a special excursion like a rafting trip on the Snake River, a wildlife safari, or a hot air balloon ride above the valley.

Yellowstone National Park Day Trip

Another option for this final day in Grand Teton is to book a day trip up to Yellowstone. The neighboring national park is known for its geysers and hot springs, and you can see several of them on this guided tour of Yellowstone’s Lower Loop or this private tour to Yellowstone.

Grand Teton National Park Guide and Tips

Use these tips to help plan your 3 day Grand Teton National Park itinerary. We’ve included where to stay, what to pack, and when to visit for the lightest crowds.

A red car is parked at a curb with a field behind it and pointy mountains in the distance. Scenic drives to see the mountains is one of the best things to do in Grand Teton National Park.

What is the Best Time of Year to Visit Grand Teton National Park?

Summer is the most popular season at Grand Teton National Park, when the weather is mild and ideal for hiking. Many national park and tourist services are only open between late May and September, so this is also the busiest time to visit. In the middle of summer, high temps average around 80 with lows dropping to 40.

If you’re flexible, traveling early or late in the season (even into October) will mean lower prices at hotels and fewer crowds on the roads and trails. June and September average about 70 for a high and in the 30s at night. It’s common to see snow in October and May and Teton Park Road closes to vehicles between November and April.

In winter, Jackson Hole turns into a ski haven, with a few different resorts in the mountains. During this time, Teton Park Road will be open for skiing, snowshoeing, and hiking. You can also book sleigh rides in the National Elk Refuge.

How Many Days Do You Need in Grand Teton National Park?

You need a minimum of one day in Grand Teton to drive a loop through the park, stop at the best overlooks, and hike one short trail.

If you’re able, I recommend a Grand Teton 3 day itinerary for your first visit so you don’t feel rushed. With a 3 days in Grand Teton National Park itinerary, you’ll cover roughly the same route, but have more time to hike to some of the beautiful alpine lakes in the Teton Range, raft on the river, or explore other parts of the Jackson Hole valley.

Even more time will allow you to slow down and soak up the scenery or spend a couple of days in Yellowstone National Park nearby.

What to Pack for Grand Teton National Park

Tickets and Passes for Grand Teton National Park

A 7-day ticket to Grand Teton National Park is $35 per car. If you plan to visit a couple other national parks within a year, consider purchasing the America the Beautiful annual pass at $80 for admission to more than 2,000 federal recreation areas.